Here's The Real Story Of The Creepy US Spy Agency Logo Boasting That 'Nothing Is Beyond Our Reach'

The National Reconnaissance Office came under fire in December
when its logo for a new satellite boasted
"nothing is beyond our reach" along with the image of an
octopus taking over the world, but new documents obtained by
Business Insider through a Freedom of Information Act request
show even the agency itself believed the logo was "sinister" and
was apparently excited about this.

The NRO coordination sheet, a document passed along with
information about the logo meant for signatures up the chain of
command contains an interesting handwritten note with the NRO
Director's approval: "Ok," it reads, "A little sinister!!"

While the agency came under fire for its choice of logo at a time
of increased scrutiny on U.S. intelligence services, the
documents show the logo was approved on Feb. 13, 2012, long
before Snowden's disclosures.

In an article meant for internal consumption at NRO and "The Five
Eyes" intelligence services called "The Patch Story," the agency
explains how it was thought up:

NRO

"The secret origin of the patch is initially from [redacted]
where the problem during the test stage in the thermal vacuum was
traced to a large piece of cabling called an octopus harness,"
the article reads, while also mentioning the intelligence of the
octopus and how it can reach prey in intricate spaces. "The
running joke for the crew was that the octopus harness had taken
over the world."

Indeed, many critics viewed the logo in a similar light, despite
NRO's assurances its capabilities are aimed only at enemies of
the United States.

"You may want to downplay the massive dragnet spying thing right
now," Christopher Soghoian, principal technologist and
senior policy analyst for the ACLU, tweeted to
the Office of Director of National Intelligence. "This logo
isn't helping."

The radar imaging program is believed to be a remnant of the
NRO’s Future Imagery Architecture (FIA) program, which was
intended to produce new-generation optical and radar-imaging
surveillance satellites, replacing the earlier KH-11 and Onyx
radar imaging spacecraft.

"It's really neat to me. It's kind of a, the enemy has no where
to run," reads a video transcript provided with the request.
"We're putting capabilities up in the sky that can [redacted].
And the octopus kind of to me represents the idea that we are
always [redacted]. We've kind of got our fingers everywhere at
any given time."

The agency did not discuss these other types of images, the
documents show.

The agency said it found five documents totaling fifteen pages
and a 2:55 video. NRO provided the five documents (with
redactions), along with the video script, but would not release
the video as it may reveal names, titles, and/or other
information on individuals working at the spy agency.